The Temple of Solkara grew colder as the sun dipped low.
Wind stirred in the halls, though no windows were open. The very air felt... alive. Watching. Waiting.
Serin stood at the edge of the tallest chamber, where ancient pillars stretched toward the sky.
"This is your place," Raeh said. "The Trial of Wind."
Kael, Lira, and Corren stood beside her.
Serin gave them a small smile. "Wish me luck."
"You don't need luck," Kael said. "You have wings."
She stepped into the chamber.
As she passed the threshold, the wind stopped.
No sound.
No movement.
Not even her own breath echoed.
Then — everything vanished.
🌬️ Trial of Wind
Serin stood in the middle of an endless sky.
But it was silent. Too silent. No breeze. No motion. No voice. Only empty air and light.
She walked, but her steps made no sound.
"Where is it?" she whispered.
The wind shard hovered nearby, spinning slowly.
Then — a voice.
Not from outside.
From inside.
"Why do you seek the wind, Serin?"
She looked around. "Because it's mine. Because I was chosen."
"You weren't. You took it."
Suddenly, she saw herself — a young girl in torn robes, alone, scared, clutching a broken staff.
The wind blew around her, not with her.
"You seek control," the voice said. "But wind cannot be caged."
The sky darkened.
Storm clouds formed — but they didn't strike.
They just waited.
Serin shouted, "I don't want to control the wind — I want to understand it!"
She spread her arms.
"I've been silent all my life. Listening. Learning. Everyone thought I was weak."
"But wind is not weakness."
"It's freedom."
The clouds swirled. The wind howled.
It rushed into her — not to fight, but to follow.
Her feet lifted off the ground.
She rose higher.
She laughed, not because she won — but because she was finally heard.
Serin opened her eyes.
Back in the temple.
Floating above the ground.
Her shard now spun like a cyclone in her palm — glowing with silver-white light, strong and silent.
She landed softly.
Kael grinned. "She flies now."
Lira smiled. "She always did."
Serin took a deep breath.
And for the first time… the wind answered.
Far to the south, the Sun-Tyrant's breath became flame.
The final trials approached.
And in the shadows…
He watched.
🌟 End of Chapter 20